Delhi High Court grants 3 more months to trial court to conclude Haryana judicial paper leak case

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 4

The Delhi High Court has granted three more months to a trial court to conclude the proceedings in a case relating to the alleged leak of the 2017 Haryana Civil Services (Judicial) preliminary examination paper.

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma – who had earlier directed that the matter be taken up on a daily basis -- said the court would appreciate if the Principal District and Sessions Judge, before whom the trial was going on, took up the matter on a day-to-day basis and granted adjournments to the parties only for unavoidable reasons.

Justice Sharma posted the matter for further hearing on September 9.

Balwinder Kumar Sharma’s petition – a former Registrar (Recruitment) of the Punjab and Haryana High Court – is the main accused in the case which was transferred to Delhi from Chandigarh on the top court’s orders in February 2021.

The trial judge wrote to the High Court that the case record was voluminous as seven chargesheets had been filed against the accused.

There were 19 accused and 85 witnesses in the case, which was at the stage of defence evidence, the trial court judge wrote, seeking at least six months for disposal of the case.

Despite the High Court's directions, the matter was not taken up on a daily basis, Special Public Prosecutor Charanjit Singh Bakshi and Chandigarh Administration counsel Amit Sahni said, requesting the high court to direct the trial court to take up the matter on a day-to-day basis.

Terming the Haryana Civil Services (Judicial) Preliminary Exam, 2017 paper leak case as a “serious matter”, the Delhi High Court in January this year asked the trial court to take it up on a day-to-day basis and complete the trial positively by April 15.

Justice Sharma noted that counsel for both parties have undertaken to cooperate in the expeditious trial before the trial court. The case is related to the leakage of the Haryana Civil Services (Judicial Branch) Preliminary Examination, 2017.

The question paper allegedly remained in the custody of petitioner Balwinder Kumar Sharma, Registrar (Recruitment) from the time the question paper was finalised till dispatch to the Examination Centre.

It was alleged that he had given a copy of the question paper to accused Sunita who further passed it on one Sushila and carried out negotiations with Suman for supplying a copy of the question paper to her for consideration of money.

On September 15, 2017, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered registration of an FIR against the petitioner Balwinder Kumar Sharma and others and asked the Chandigarh Police to investigate the matter.

On November 8, 2017, accused Sunita was arrested from her residence in the case. After evidence came on record against accused Balwinder Kumar Sharma during the investigation, he was arrested on December 28, 2017.

On January 5, 2018, police filed a charge sheet against the petitioner and co-accused Sunita and thereafter four supplementary charge sheets were filed against other co-accused persons.

On January 10, 2020, the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the trial court to consider the framing of charges against the accused in three weeks.

On January 31, 2020, the trial court ordered framing of charges against the accused in the case.

Sharma challenged the order on charge dated January 31, 2020 on February 19, 2020 by filing the Criminal Revision petition before the Punjab & Haryana High Court.

However, at the instance of the petitioner, the Supreme Court on February 5, 2021, transferred the case from a Chandigarh court to a Delhi court and it’s now pending trial before the Court of Principal District & Sessions Judge-Cum-Special Judge (PC Act/CBI), Rouse Avenue, New Delhi.

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